Before The Day Breaks
by the-tanned-bella
Summary: Water bottle?  5.oo. New sneakers?  32.50. Meeting a totally gorgeous jogger? Priceless. Takari, real world.
1. Run Around

**A/N: Hey guys! So what am I doing here you ask? And with DIGIMON? Well, it hadn't exactly been my intention to write a new fanfic to be perfectly honest. I'd been toying with the idea of writing something new a lot lately, but no ideas had come to mind. Then, I'm sitting there at about, oh, five in the morning trying to go to sleep, when **_**this**_** starts writing itself in my head! Obviously I had to oblige and pull out my handy dandy laptop, so, here we are, eight am now. Honestly, I've been wanting to write a Digimon fanfiction for awhile now, so if you're a Twilight fan, I apologize. Hopefully I'll write something Twilight-related soonish, but until then I hope you can be patient. :-) Anyhoo, ONWARD!**

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon or any of the lovely characters involved. **_

Chapter One

Hikari Yagami stared down at the ominous plate in front of her, an expression of horror plastered onto her face. There was _no way_ she would ever finish something so gargantuan. _No. Way._ She groaned. "Why on earth do you insist on continually bringing me here? You _know_ I can't resist deserts!" she whined.

"Exactly," said her friend after a spoonful of their own massive treat, "Why I keep bringing you here."

She glared. "Ken, do you want me to get fat? Because I swear that's what you're trying to do to me."

He simply laughed at her angry, stubborn expression. "No Kari," he said, still laughing. "Just eat."

She paused for a moment, contemplating. "Okay, I will," she said picking up a fork and watching her best friend's eyes light up in triumph. "But," she added. "I'm going to start jogging from now on."

He considered this for a moment. "Jogging's good I suppose…" He didn't add anything else, however, because he already knew what would come next.

"So does that mean you'll come with me?" she asked eagerly, her brown eyes brightening instantly.

"Well," he said looking down as he slowly picked away at his desert. "What time would you be going around?"

She thought about this for a moment. "Five am," Kari said with certainty.

His jaw dropped. "Why so early?"

The real reason of course was because Kari didn't want anyone, obviously other than Ken, although he hardly counted, to see her jog. Even though she had yet to begin, she already knew it would not be a pretty sight when she did. However, what she said instead was, "I like it when it's quiet." It was a half-truth and would have to suffice. Ken was her best friend, true, but did she want to explain to him how idiotic she was sure she looked every time she even _thought_ about running? I think not.

This answer, he seemed to accept. However, it was not enough for Ken to go with her. "Kari, you know I can't do mornings. I'm sorry," he said, looking like he truly meant it.

She tried not to let her disappointment show as she responded with, "That's alright. I'll just jog on my own."

"If you're sure," he said, pulling up her chin so he could look directly at her. She nodded briefly, knowing she was certain of her convictions now; Ken often worked quite late into the night, so jogging with him would have never worked out anyhow. "Okay," he said standing up and grabbing his jacket from behind his chair. "I've got to go now Kari, so I'll see you later, alright?"

She nodded again as he placed a gentle hand on her arm. "Bye," she said, instantly returning to her usual cheerful self_. So I'll have to jog alone- big deal, _she thought_. _After he was out of sight, she too backed out of her chair and began walking toward her apartment. _At least,_ she added to herself, _it'll be nice and quiet._

The next morning, Kari groggily glared at her annoyingly loud alarm clock. "Shuddup," she grumbled into her pillow, slamming her hand down hard onto the clock's smooth surface. Instantly, the buzzing ceased and Kari easily drifted back to her original comfortable position.

_Why'd it have to be five again?_ She asked herself, sleep still hazing her mind. She thought back to yesterday's conversation with Ken and slowly her memories crept into view. _Jogging,_ she thought with a slight bit more clarity. _I want to go jogging. Five am?_ she asked herself, still unsure of her motives behind this ungodly hour. _People. No people,_ she grasped, finally coming to her senses. Lazily, she plucked herself off her soft bed, full of apprehension.

_This is certainly going to be interesting,_ she thought to herself, fastening her hair into a tight ponytail after donning her workout gear. Displeased with how it looked, she comforted herself with the thought that there would be no one out at this hour, particularly not any good looking men, so it really didn't matter how badly her hair looked.

Stepping out into the darkened morning, she began her jog, starting slowly at first, but eventually picking up speed. She soon found that the rhythmic sound of her feet hitting the asphalt was soothing, and realized with a start that this was something she could easily find herself enjoying. She _wanted_ to keep running, and all previous feelings of dread slowly disintegrated with each pounding step. Kari ran, and continued running, until she could run no more. Finally spent, she collapsed onto a bench and began dousing herself with water, not even bothering to care if she missed her open mouth.

Absolutely exhausted, she leaned back, completely hunched over, and closed her eyes. She felt so at peace and so accomplished with herself that at that very moment, she hadn't even bothered to listen for other footsteps. "Morning," said a cheerful, but deep voice with an obvious smile to it.

_Okay,_ Kari reasoned with herself before opening her eyes, _so I'm not the only one out this morning. As long as it's not a cute guy, I'll be okay. _Positive that the odds would be good, Kari slowly blinked open her eyes, the blurry figure sluggishly coming into view.

_OH DAMN IT ALL TO HELL! _She raged inside her head while blinking a few more times for good measure. It was just her luck really, because standing in front of her was probably one of the most attractive guys she had ever seen. _Honestly,_ _of all days!_ she continued, absolutely dumbfounded at how ironic her life truly was. _Of ALL DAYS for some strikingly good-looking, tall, blonde-haired BEAST to come wandering into my life, he chooses TODAY! Today, the day I take up JOGGING? Well that is just GREAT!_ She huffed at no one in particular, or perhaps fate, when she finally noticed that said stunning blonde boy was still standing in front of her.

Quickly back-pedalling, she realized that he must have assumed the huff was meant for him since he looked slightly taken-aback. Mentally cursing herself for being so sweaty at a time like this, she plastered on a smile and extended a hand. "Morning! Name's Kari Yagami!"

He quickly brushed off his confused expression and placed his own hand in hers, shaking it vigorously while giving her a slightly lopsided grin. "Hey Kari, I'm Takeru Takaishi, but you can call me T.K."

"Hey," she added, grinning for real this time. His smile could only be described as infectious.

Letting go of her hand, he looked down at her and added, "You're probably one of the first people I've seen out at this hour. Do you jog often?"

"Ha! No," she responded. "I'm a newbie."

He grinned again, this time with a slightly more mischievous look in his eyes. "A newb, eh?" he asked. "Thought so."

She groaned inwardly. "Do I really look that awfully when I run?" she asked, only remembering now her issue with the running and the people and the weirdness. It seemed all her jogging nightmares had come true in a brief matter of minutes. _So much for enjoying jogging,_ she thought glumly to herself. _Not only is there people (well, okay, hot guys), but you also look like an idiot while you're at it. Fan-tastic!_

"Not at all," he said, clearly surprised that she had even asked.

"Then what gave it away?" she asked, puzzled, looking up into his eyes. _Blue eyes, _she noted.

He laughed again. "I'm pretty sure the fact that you're passed out on a park bench was good indication."

Kari could only manage to respond with an "Oh."

"Well Kari, it was nice meeting you," he said suddenly, picking up his pace again. "See you around?" As she nodded at his retreating figure, she couldn't help but notice that his closing line had been a question, not a statement. _So does that mean I'll see him again?_ she asked herself, not expecting a reply. However, a subtle voice, her own voice, whispered in the back of her head, _If you keep jogging you will. _

Finally lifting herself off the park bench, she began running again, this time in the direction of her apartment.

**A/N: Chapter title is Run Around, from Digimon itself! ^.^ According to google, the artist is Jasan Radford. That, I never knew, but I suppose I'll have to correct it on my iPod eventually hahah. Anyways, please, please review and tell me what you think!**


	2. I'll Hold My Breath

**A/N: Hello, hello! I must apologize for not posting this sooner. It's been written, but I suppose it sort of slipped my mind since I was having trouble with the next few chapters. I hope you can forgive me!**

_**Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon (sadly). **_

Chapter Two

Kari and Ken were in her apartment after just finishing a movie. "I can't believe you made me watch that!" Kari said jokingly, looking up at Ken.

"Aw, come on, it wasn't that bad!" he said, desperately trying to defend his choice of film.

"The blood was so fake!" Kari said in mock horror. "I mean, if you're going to add blood, at least make it look realistic!"

Ken simply rolled his eyes at his strange friend. "So anyways, how was your jogging today?"

Kari instantly looked down at her hands, feeling embarrassed. "Um…it was good." she said simply, hoping he wouldn't pry any further.

No such luck. "What happened Kari? Did you fall?" he asked teasingly.

She looked up and mock punched him in the arm. "No, I did not fall!"

Ken rubbed his arm where it had been hit, not because it actually hurt, but for Kari's sake. "Then what's with all the blushing, hm?"

Kari looked down again. "Uh…cute guy," she said, sneaking a glance up at him from the corner of her eye.

"Oh," he said, all the previous humour gone from his eyes. Ken had _never_ liked any of the people Kari had had crushes on throughout their years of friendship. He was so overprotective!

She rolled her eyes at him. "Oh, calm down!" she said, used to this kind of reaction. "I only saw him once, and I'll probably never seen him again." She added the last part glumly.

"Well…okay," he responded.

"Why are you so against the idea of me being even the slightest bit interested in anyone?" she asked seriously, not really annoyed, but simply curious.

He paused for a moment. "It's just…" he began. "I don't think any of them are really good enough for you…"

"That's not true!" she replied, surprised. She stopped for a minute to think. "What about that one Hoi brother I dated for a bit? He wasn't so bad."

Ken looked at her disgustedly. "Oh yeah, that was fun. Every time you went to dinner at his place, his brothers couldn't stop drooling over you."

Kari laughed at the memory. "Okay, maybe that _was_ a little awkward, but what about Cody? He was sweet."

"Kari," Ken said seriously. "He could barely even talk to you. It took him a month before he started actually picking up the phone when you called."

"True…" she said, pondering. "Well, how about Willis? You can't tell me you didn't like Willis."

Hesitantly, he responded. "Willis _was_ nice, but you weren't happy with him. He lived so far away…you were always missing him."

"True, true, true," she said, falling backwards onto the couch dramatically. She sighed, throwing her hands up in mock despair. "Oh woe is me! I am destined to a life of solitude and numerous cats!" She glanced at Ken, but he wasn't laughing at her performance.

"No Kari," he said determinedly. "You'll find somebody. I know you will."

She patted him on the shoulder. "Thanks Ken, I know you will too." She shifted her body so she was facing the large wall clock above her head. "Holy crow!" she cried. "It's already midnight!" Sighing, she stood up. "I had better get to bed if I want to be up bright and early tomorrow morning…" Kari wasn't exactly what you might call pleased with the prospect of another five am wake-up.

Ken looked up at her from his place on the couch. "Do you want me to come jogging with you tomorrow?" he asked, although it was clear from his tone that he wasn't all that into it.

"Nah," Kari responded. "You enjoy your day off. Get some good sleep."

"Only if you're sure," he said looking relieved, but also apologetic at the same time.

"Oh yes," she responded while beginning to walk toward her bedroom. "Night Ken!" She gently closed the thick door behind her as she heard his muffled response of, "Night," while he shifted his way toward the exit. She quickly changed into her pyjamas and hopped into her bed.

Even though, theoretically, she should have been exhausted, she wasn't. Kari stared at the ceiling as thoughts swirled in and out of her head. She thought about the little things like whether or not she did the laundry and how she hadn't called her brother in awhile, but mostly, she thought about the bigger things like her conversation with Ken from moments before.

Although she joked about it, somehow, it worried her. Yes, she was still young, only 23, but she couldn't help but wonder if she would ever find that special someone. She had been in relationships before, it was true, but they were never all that meaningful as Ken had so kindly pointed out. _Who's the right person for me?_ she thought sadly.

Thinking hard, she tried to conjure up an image of her ideal man. _He has to be nice, _she thought, _and witty wouldn't hurt either. I have to be able to talk to him, not like Cody, and we should be able to joke together, but still be able to talk seriously as well. Physically, he'd probably be tall, and as least a little athletic. He'd have pretty eyes, and knowing me, I'd imagine he'd be blonde._

She paused in her mental rant, realizing her thoughts had shifted toward T.K. _Aw, crap_, she thought, not really willing herself to think romantically about the guy she had just met. "I'll probably never see him again," she repeated to herself aloud in the darkness. Slowly, she drifted off into a deep, troubled sleep.

**A/N: Chapter title is I'll Hold My Breath by Ellie Goulding. (LOVE her!) **

**Please review! **:-D


	3. You're Gonna Go Far Kid

**A/N: Yay for chapter three! **

Chapter Three

"Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!"

_Ugh,_ Kari thought, slamming her fist down repetitively. _That alarm is going to get old real fast._ She forcefully pushed herself off of her bed and onto her feet. Shuffling, she made her way to the closet where she got changed as quickly as a person with so little sleep possibly could. She then moved toward her dresser where she contemplated the elastic sitting in the centre of it. For a moment, she considered leaving her hair down, but quickly brushed the though aside out of practicality. _If Takeru _is_ there, _she reasoned while pulling her hair into a tight ponytail, _he'll just have to deal with my heinous appearance. _

Grabbing her water bottle, she made her way out the door and into the elevator which would eventually bring her to the cool summer morning.

Much like the day previous, she instantly fell into step, soothed by the subtle quiet of the early hour. Kari didn't need music or noise to be entertained; the feeling of movement was entertainment enough. She loved the way the wind brushed against her cheek and the soft patter of her feet hitting the ground. Really, she didn't know why she hadn't taken up jogging any sooner. It probably had something to do with the insanely early hour, but at that very moment, she didn't care. It was instantaneous freedom.

With glee, she watched as she passed by the park bench that she hadn't been able to go further than the day before. Not much longer, her legs began cramping and she was forced to stop. _But at least,_ she added, taking a swig of water, _I made it further today. _

Catching her breath, she rested in the soft, dewy grass, thinking. _It seems as though Mr. Takaishi has failed to make an appearance this morning. _Part of her was vastly relieved, but she was also slightly disappointed. _I guess I was right about never seeing him again…_

"Hiya Kari!" said a cheerful voice from behind. She looked up, and there he was, clad in workout gear and an absolutely ridiculous looking hat. He plopped down beside her, clearly not caring that the grass was wet and added, "I'm T.K. by the way, in case you didn't remember."

"I remember," she said, still a bit dumbfounded that he had managed to find her not once, but twice. _How far does this guy jog anyways?_

"Good! So how are you this fine Tuesday morning?" he asked sunnily.

"Do you wake up this cheerful or something?" Kari responded grumpily. She was a bit irritated that he was able to catch her off guard like that, not to mention the fact that she looked like crap while he looked like…well…like he had gotten a full night's sleep last night, and wasn't sweating at all, not to mention the fact that his hair wasn't in some stupidly repulsive ponytail.

He laughed at her response. "Not a morning person then, eh?"

Her annoyed expression quickly turned apologetic. "No, I'm not," she said, embarrassed by her rudeness. "Sorry, I'm usually a lot nicer than this, it's just…four hours sleep isn't really my colour."

"Hey, don't sweat it. I was the same way when I first started jogging," he responded.

"I'm sweaty enough already," she grumbled under her breath.

He laughed again, able to catch what she had said despite her low tone. "Besides the sweating then, how do you like jogging so far?"

She pondered this for a moment. "And besides the early mornings? I like it quite a bit actually. It's…relaxing." She looked at him now. "Know what I mean?"

He smiled. "I know _exactly_ what you mean. Although, I'm curious, why so early if you hate mornings? Wouldn't it make more sense to jog at night?"

"Well," she said deciding she would honest with him. "I don't like people to see me when I run. I think I must look really silly. If I come out here early, there aren't any people…or at least I _thought_ there wouldn't be any people."

She could tell he was suppressing another laugh, although he did a relatively good job at controlling himself. "You look fine when you jog," he said, chuckling despite his efforts.

She smirked deviously. "So you've been watching me jog then?"

He looked down sheepishly. "Only a little bit," he admitted.

_Excellent, _she added mentally. What she said aloud, however, was, "What's up with the hat?"

He grinned. "This?" he asked, pulling the large, white brimmed-cap off his head and into his hands. He smiled fondly down at the piece of fabric. "This is my lucky hat."

"You weren't wearing it yesterday," Kari pointed out.

"I felt like I might an extra dose of luck today," he said, jamming the hat tightly back onto his head with a smile. "But your right, I generally don't wear hats while jogging."

Kari tried to make sense of his mysterious statement, but to no avail. Instead, she decided to change the topic. "How long have you been jogging for anyhow? I mean, every time I see you, you don't look tired at all."

He thought about this for a moment. "It's been a long time. I think I probably started when I was about fifteen," he responded.

_So that explains it,_ she thought to herself, remembering his nicely toned legs. To him, she replied, "Wow, that's a long time."

He smiled. "It doesn't feel so long when you enjoy it as much as I do. It's sort of my time to relax and think. I guess you could say when I'm jogging I'm really, truly happy. The feeling of seeing just how far you can go," he said, speaking animatedly with his hands. "It's just incredible. You keep pushing yourself further and further and there's no limits; it's just you and the pavement and nothing else really matters." He ended here and looked at Kari.

"That, I can understand," she said smiling brightly. "Look! I made it further than yesterday!" She gestured to the bench where her jog had ended the day previous, not exactly what one would call far from their current position.

T.K. grinned at her enthusiasm. "Good job!" He looked over his shoulder at the horizon. "Oh man, the sun's almost up! I'd better get going if I want to finish my run."

Astonished, Kari looked as well, and realized that the sun was indeed gaining height in the sky. She got to her feet, accepting the offer of T.K.'s outstretched hand as he helped her up. His fingers lingered in hers for just a moment too long but he quickly came to his senses and let go, looking away. "Well, um, I guess I should be going then," he said, still not looking at her. "Bye Kari!" he called, already beginning to jog away.

"Bye," she muttered to herself. He was already gone.

**A/N: Chapter title is You're Gonna Go Far, Kid by the Offspring. Please review! :-)**


	4. Favourite Colour

"**Last modified: 17/09/2010." Basically, a complete and utter fail on my part! I am so sorry guys. This chapter has just been sitting here, simply waiting to be posted. :-| **

**I really suck, but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless!**

Chapter Four

Easily, Kari fell into an effortless pattern as she became more and more accustomed to her daily ritual. Battle with the alarm clock, get ready, meet Takeru, run. Yes, even T.K. had become a regular aspect of her routine. Surprisingly, not long after they had met, T.K. began meeting her at her doorstep every morning, eagerly awaiting for her to join in with the exercise.

Although she found it quite strange how a running zealot such as himself had no problem with slowing his pace to match her own, she didn't object. Kari was pleased for the companionship, and as much as she hated to admit it, she was particularly pleased that the companionship came from him.

Running now, she chanced a glance at him for a brief moment asking, "What got you started on running anyhow?"

She faced forward now, but she could still tell he was smiling. "Nice try Kari, but right now we're talking about _you_."

She sighed, irritated that he refused to share a piece of information about himself, as small as it may be. "Not much else to tell," she replied gruffly. She had been explaining what brought her to her rash running decision just moments before.

He laughed, clearly still not even fazed from all of their running. Kari, on the other hand, was starting to feel it. "Oh, there's _plenty _to tell. For instance, why didn't this Ken fellow come jogging with you?"

Huffing a little, she explained how, as much as he regretted it, he simply couldn't because of work. Kari finally gave T.K. the signal, and they flopped onto the nearby grass. _Well actually _I_ flopped,_ Kari corrected herself mentally. _T.K. sort of just sat down completely gracefully. Jerk._ Kari still held some resentment toward the fact that he was able to look good with _everything_ he did.

He then asked about Ken, someone who was a mysterious figure in T.K.'s mind. To Kari, this idea seemed absurd as she had know Ken for so long; the idea of _not _knowing him was impossible. Nonetheless, she explained to T.K. all about Ken. He was her best friend, and had been for a very long time. They were always there for one another, and although he had the annoying tendency to be overprotective sometimes, she still loved him deeply with something she considered close to brotherly affection.

T.K. listened carefully, only breaking eye-contact to take a swig of his water bottle occasionally. After she was done, they both lapsed into a brief silence, T.K. pensive, and Kari clearly curious about his thoughts. Finally, he spoke up.

"From what I've seen, guys and girls rarely stay 'just friends'," he said finally. "Not when they're that close." The statement was simple in theory, but it set Kari's mind, as well as her temper, loose.

"What's _that_ supposed to mean?" she asked putting her hands on her hips.

T.K. threw his hands up in a surrendering gesture. "Hey, it was just an observation."

"Well it's _not_ the case with Ken and I," she responded acidly. She had just explained how she felt about Ken, hadn't she? Romantic was the last thing one could use to communicate the affection she had described to him.

Choosing his words carefully, he said, "You're lucky to have such a good friend."

She nodded her head while her anger ebbed away quickly. Realization dawned on her as she said, "You sound like you're speaking from personal experience."

He looked genuinely surprised for a moment that she had come to that conclusion. "Not personal exactly," he mused. "My brother, he and a good friend of his, ended up together in the end. It wasn't really what any of us expected, but they were always there for each other and eventually things became romantic between them." He shrugged. "It was natural."

Now it was Kari's turn to be surprised. T.K. had never spoken about his family before. In fact, Kari was convinced he didn't have any siblings up until this point. Eager to grab at a chance to get to know him better, she asked "What's he like? You're brother, I mean."

T.K. lightened instantly, laughing. "Oh, you know, the usual. Rock-star wannabe." He leaned in conspiratorially now, whispering in her ear. "Don't tell him I told you this, but he's _not very good_." Kari laughed. "Yamato, Matt, is his name," he added happily. There was something in his expression that told he was glad to have who he did as a brother, and proud too.

"What about the rest of your family?" she asked, pleased he was finally sharing information about himself. Although T.K. was always friendly, there was a sort of reserved nature about him that made her wonder if he was all that eager to be known. He asked her loads of questions, sure, but when she tried to reciprocate, he would artfully dodge them. Like now, for instance.

"What about _yours_? Matt's twenty-six. Didn't you say you had a brother around that age? What's he like?"

Although Kari was irritated he was able to avoid her questions _again_ she wanted to talk about her brother. After hearing Takeru speak of himself, it made her want to share a little bit of herself to him as well. Enthusiastically, she launched into multiple tales of her zany older brother, Tai. She explained how he was always eating, being silly, and letting that big head of his get in the way of things.

T.K. laughed accordingly before saying "He sounds like a great guy, but…" he adding glancing over his shoulder.

Kari sighed. She knew that look. "Daylight's coming so we have to go?" She didn't even think about her use of the word 'we'; when it came to jogging, they were a team.

Nodding, he got to his feet while she narrowed her eyes at him accusatorily. "Are you a superhero? Or perhaps a ninja in need of the cover of darkness at all times?"

He grinned widely as he helped her to her feet. "I wish it were that glamorous. I just have to go to work."

"Oh, well that's no fun!" she teased. "And here I thought you were out saving the world."

"I am," he said giving her a completely straight face. "Saving the world from boring breakfasts that is. I work for the local newspaper."

She burst into giggles from his performance and again, so familiarly, they were running.

**A/N: Chapter title is Favourite Colour by Tokyo Police Club. I swear, these titles do make sense, or they do to me at least. :-P**

**Review, review, review!**


	5. Made to Change

**A/N: So why have I not been updating you ask? I suppose this will be a pretty cliché response, but it's been because of school. This year marked my very first year in university and I must say it was quite stressful. I didn't have time for anything except for studying, papers, and research. This is actually the first time I've written anything fun in months, and I have to say it feels amazing! Now that I am finally on break, I plan on working on this story as much as possible. Again, I want to deeply apologize for such a long absence, but I hope that you all enjoy this chapter, and hopefully my writing isn't too rusty! :-P**

Chapter 5

That evening after work, Kari stopped by at her local convenience store quickly browsing the newspaper section. Although Kari enjoyed reading well enough, she had never been much of a newspaper person, and couldn't actually recall the last time she had purchased one. Nonetheless, Kari grabbed a copy of a newspaper that appeared to be local and brought it to the till.

Finally settled in her apartment building, Kari sat down, flicking off her shoes and opening the paper which seemed so foreign on her kitchen table. She quickly skimmed through the paper, looking for a familiar name. Finally, her eyes rested on what she had been looking for: _"The Joys of Jogging: Your Daily Dose of Exercise by Takeru Takaishi."_

"This is so pathetic of me," Kari mumbled to herself, before reading on nonetheless.

"_Have you been looking for an exercise that's simple, fun, and easy to get into? If so, then don't bother with that fancy gym membership you've been considering. Instead, look no further than you local sidewalk! _

_I'm of course talking about jogging. Jogging just so happens to be my personal favourite form of exercise, and it could easily be yours too."_

The article went on to explain all the health benefits of jogging and how it could improve one's overall physical shape. One line at the end, however, caught Kari's attention.

"_Although jogging is great on your own, I've learned from recent experience that finding a jogging buddy can make things twice as fun. Time simply flies when you jog with someone interesting to talk to, so I would highly recommend it." _

_He's talking about me, _Kari realized, a wide grin spreading across her face. The article concluded with a cheeky one-liner warning the readers to stay off of T.K.'s jogging turf and only go out at night. Although he had frequently raved to Kari about how much he enjoyed jogging in the morning, apparently he didn't want his readers to do the same for some strange reason.

The next morning, Kari got ready in her usual routine, getting ready quickly before rushing out to find T.K. on her apartment front steps, as per usual. He flashed her an A class grin before starting off without a word.

"T.K.!" Kari groaned, chasing after him. Despite the fact that Kari's jogging performance had improve immensely since she had began, she was still no where near T.K.'s level. Eventually, however, he slowed enough for her to catch up. "Where are we going anyhow?" Kari asked, regaining her composure. While attempting to meet T.K.'s long-legged pace, she had noticed that they were headed in a slightly different route than their usual.

He smiled mysteriously. "It's a secret."

As much as Kari attempted to get more information out of him, he wouldn't budge, so she instead opted for a change in topic. "I read your article on jogging yesterday," she stated.

"Oh?" he asked, his eyebrows raising slightly as he kept his pace. "And what did you think?"

"Your writing is quite good, although I had a question about it." He raised his eyebrows again. "What was with the cryptic warning about your readers not jogging in the morning? I thought you said jogging was _best_ in the morning?"

"Oh, _that._ Jogging _is_ best in the morning, but I didn't want them getting in our way. I like it best when it's just you and I. If there were a bunch of other joggers out at this time, I'd be irritated that we couldn't talk like we usually do." Kari was about to ponder this interesting development, but before she had a chance T.K. stopped and stated "We're here."

Kari looked up, huffing a little after the extended jog. Although she was relieved to have stopped, she was slightly confused. "A park?"

"Yup," he said matter-of-factly. He grabbed her hand and dragged her over to the swings where they sat side by side, gently swaying in the early morning breeze.

For awhile, they simply swung in silence, but eventually Takeru spoke up. "When we first started jogging together, you asked me about where I jogged to. Well, this is the place." He gestured with his hand in a sweeping motion across the length of the park.

Kari glanced around, surprised. To her, it seemed like your average park with swings and slides, nothing fancy. "How come?"

T.K. paused for a moment, looking troubled. It tugged at Kari's heartstrings a little to see him without his easy lopsided grin. It just seemed… unnatural.

"When I was quite young," he began, squinting into the horizon, "My parents took me to this exact park for the very first time. I was ecstatic, and I spent the entire day playing with my big brother, Matt. It was a great day for me. However, on the car ride home, my parents told my brother and I that they would be divorcing and that Matt and I wouldn't get to live together anymore. I was a wreck. We moved away, but a few years later, I ended up moving back into town. Every day on my way to school, I would walk by that park, and I eventually began to resent it. It was silly really, but in my childish mind the park became a tangible representation of the divorce, something to blame if you will. I had never hated anything more in my life than I had hated that park.

As I got older, I started getting really moody - you know how teenagers can be. I remember one particular instance, my mom and I got in a fight over, well, nothing really, but I was so angry that I just started running and didn't stop. I didn't pay any attention to where I was going or when I'd be back; I just ran. I finally stopped running when I thought my lungs would burst, and somehow, I ended up here. I expected myself to feel the rage that had normally come up at the sight of this place, but it didn't. Instead, I felt completely at peace. It was then that I realized I could turn this park into something positive for me. Instead of a place of resentment, it became a goal, and I could no longer hate it. That's why I run, and that's why I come here. For me, it's like my own symbol of personal growth."

Kari was silent for a moment. "That's a really sad story," she said lamely, unsure of what else she could possibly say. T.K. had never revealed so much about himself before, and she wasn't quite sure how to respond.

"It doesn't have to be sad," he responded, the distracted glaze leaving his eyes. He returned to his usual smile. "I just wanted to share a little bit about myself with you. I've never really bothered telling anybody that story, but I particularly felt like sharing with you, although I can't quite put my finger on why."

"I'm glad you did," she replied honestly. Even though it was simply one story, she already felt like it told so much about Takeru. It explained so many things: his hesitance to reveal information about himself, his positivity in life, his love for jogging…it was all just _so T.K., _and Kari realized that she wouldn't want it any other way.

"What are you grinning about?" he asked, nudging her shoulder.

She decided to be honest with him, and responded simply with a "You."

"Good," he said flashing her another grin. "You had better keep it that way." He got up and brushed himself off, gesturing for Kari to do the same. She did, and together they set off jogging once more.

**A/N: Chapter title is Made to Change by Ruby Coast. I know I don't deserve it for being such a terrible updater, but pretty please review?**


	6. Dissembler

**New chapter for you guys! I've been trying to become more timely with updates, so here you go! :-)**

Like usual, Kari and Ken were in her apartment. Ken gently released one of the grocery bags he had been carrying from his arms and placed it on the counter. As Kari set to work putting the food away, Ken sat down at her kitchen table. It had always been this way: Ken being Kari's personal bag handler while Kari bribed him with various sorts of fast food. "So, what will it be tonight?" she asked, shifting the cans of soup from the plastic bags and into the opened cupboard.

"Hm…" he contemplated. "How about pizza?"

"Pizza it is then," she responded, picking up the phone and dialling their favourite place. By now, Kari had learned the number by heart as it was somewhat of a tradition of theirs to have pizza and watch crappy movies together. She glanced at Ken while she placed her order and noticed him looking at something on the table.

Kari hung up the phone as Ken asked "Since when do you read the newspaper?"

Kari felt herself turn slightly red, but thankfully her back had been turned away from him as he had asked. "I dunno, I just thought I'd give it a try," she responded. Although the page was still open to T.K.'s article, she had never told Ken T.K.'s last name, or even that T.K. was short for Takeru, so he fortunately wouldn't be able to tease her about it later.

Ken looked amused, but didn't say anything as Kari continued putting groceries away.

"So," Ken asked. "What movie will it be tonight? Your pick."

Kari gratefully contemplated her movie options. Ken's taste in movies were quite different from her own, and often Kari had to do everything in her power not to laugh aloud at his ridiculous choice in films.

She finally returned with a suitable movie for the evening and popped it into the player before throwing herself onto the couch.

Although she tried her best to enjoy the movie - it _was_ one of her favourites after all - she found it incredibly hard to concentrate. Her best friend, although normally quite calm, wouldn't stop fidgeting in his seat. Every time he would shift into a new position, moments later he would jerkily sit upright and reposition himself again. It was unnerving, really, and Kari was immensely relieved when the movie was finally over.

She got up to put the film back in its case and sat back down, desperately hoping Ken's mood had returned to normal.

"Kari, can I talk to you?" he asked, looking at her intently now.

"Talk away," Kari said, relieved. Knowing Ken, something was probably just bothering him, something he needed to say. He would get whatever it was off his chest and then he would return to his regular old self. _Maybe,_ Kari thought hopefully _Ken's finally met a girl or something, and he's nervous about telling me. _Kari had been hoping Ken would come with news of a girlfriend ever since they were thirteen years old but through the years, news had never come along. Perhaps now was the time.

Rather than talking, however, Ken leaned in close and kissed her, directly on the lips. Kari's eyes widened and more out of shock than anything else she let him linger there for a moment too long before forcefully pushing him away.

"What-" she started, but Ken swiftly cut her off.

"I'm in love with you Kari," he said sincerely. "I have been ever since we were kids. I've always just been too scared to tell you." Kari wanted to shake him, wake up from this horrible nightmare where her best friend felt more for her than she could ever feel for him, but as much as she tried to blink the sleep away, the scene before her remained. _Oh God, _she thought. _This is actually real. _She felt slightly ill, and slowly her memory recalled what T.K. had once said to her: _"From what I've seen, guys and girls rarely stay 'just friends.' Not when they're that close."_

"Ken," she said. She couldn't believe this, she honestly couldn't. What she couldn't believe more than anything else though, was the hope that still shone brightly in his eyes. Hope that she would love him back in the same way he loved her. _Hope that would never become a reality. _The next string of words poured out of her mouth like viscous lava, unstoppable, dangerous, and destroying everything in its path. She hadn't even meant to say it at all, but she blurted, "I'm starting to fall for T.K." Although she hadn't realized it until this very moment, the second the words left her lips she knew them to be true. Still, that didn't make her regret them any less.

Ken's face fell completely, wiping all traces of hope, love and happiness far, far away. "T.K.?" he asked flatly. "The…the jogger?" He sounded incredulous.

Kari couldn't even move her head to nod, but her silence was response enough.

Although she had thought that the flat, emotionless expression Ken had donned moments before was the most terrible sight she had ever seen of him, this quickly changed as his expression flickered into something even more terrible. His face was alight with white hot liquid rage, a fire of emotions clearly splayed across his face. His eyes, on the other hand, were like a block of ice: cold, hard and frozen into a bizarre look of hatred that Kari had never seen before and never expected to see.

"So you're choosing him?" he said, his voice rising now from the emotionless whisper it had taken before. "Him? Some guy you've known for - what, a few months? - over me? Me, the guy you've known you're entire life? Your supposed _best friend_?"

"Ken!" Kari started toward him, but he held out a hand, a disgusted look crossing his features.

"I don't want to hear it."

He started toward the door as Kari yelled "Ken, wait!"

He paused at the knob, freezing her in her place with one icy look. "I have been waiting Kari. The past ten years have been nothing but me waiting. I'm done." With that, he left not bothering to give her another glance.

Slowly, she sank to the floor and curled herself up into a ball with her knees pulled tightly against her chest. She desperately tried to release herself from the sick sense of dread that was overcoming her, but instead tears began prickling at the back of her eyes before dripping freely down her cheeks. Her apartment had never felt so empty.

**Chapter title is Dissembler by Woodhands. **


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